Edwards Radicalizes Anti-Corporate Pitch

Dubuque, Iowa - Amid a heavy snow storm Friday afternoon, an overflow crowd of several hundred supporters bundled into a meeting hall in this economically battered town to hear candidate John Edwards escalate his closing campaign message of opposing "corporate greed" and denounce what he called a "small group of profiteers" dominating American life.

"Everything about America is threatened today...this is an epic struggle for the future of America," Edwards told the cheering crowd. "Corporate greed and the very powerful use their money to control Washington and this corrupting influence is destroying the middle class."

While all of the presidential campaigns have refocused to some degree on foreign policy in the wake of the murder of Pakistani leader Benazir Bhutto, Edwards is keeping his message of economic fairness front and center during the final week of campaigning here. "We will defeat greed and fear - and strike a blow for working people, for those with no voice, for those Washington has ignored too long." Edwards made no mention of the Pakistani crisis in his newly re-tooled stump speech.

While Edwards has consistently campaigned on an economically populist program, his speech today in Dubuque was marked by a noticeable ratcheting up and radicalization of his critique of corporate wealth and power.

"Why on earth would we expect the corporate powers and their lobbyists, who make billions by selling out the middle-class, to just give up their power because we ask them nicely?" Edwards asked. He made no mention of rivals Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton in today's speech; in the past, he has slammed Clinton for being too indebted to powerful Washington lobbies.

Edwards is in the midst of a final 38-county push to win next Thursday's Iowa caucuses. Even his own supporters will concede that taking Iowa is a do-or-die must for a campaign running third in national polls, but in a virtual dead heat in the Hawkeye State with rivals Clinton and Obama.

Nestled on the gritty Illinois border, Dubuque has been hit hard by the collapse in American manufacturing jobs and offers itself as a perfect venue for Edwards' message of economic fairness. The local Flexsteel plant has lost about two-thirds of its 800 jobs over the past decade. Paper maker Georgia Pacific, another big employer in town, has also been hit hard by job exports.

"Iowa has lost twice as many jobs to unfair trade deals than it's won in the so-called technological revolution," Edwards adviser Dave "Mudcat" Saunders told the HuffPost before today's event started. "What kind of revolution is that?" Saunders said Edwards would stay on his message of opposing "unchecked greed" and that it was a theme that resonated deeply throughout the state.

Check out the rest of HuffPost's Iowa coverage.

Comments

[llmitchellb]

Radicalizes? How about "Calls a spade, a spade." But radicalizes? Are you high?

[ceasenake]

Spoken like a true rich southern lawyer.

[kellygrrrl]

for those of us looking for a Progressiv­e/Populist leader, Edwards is our best hope. I hope his message is being heard.

[StrategicThinker]

Edwards definitely needs to use the words, "UNCHECKED GREED."

That is one darned good "frame" right there.

[nellie]

"Radicaliz­es." It is to laugh.

There are no political radicals on the public stage right now, and there haven't been for a long long time. The so-called "center" has been pushed so far to the right by talk radio and a complicit media that Americans no longer see anything of a true leftist political agenda.

John Edwards is advocating for policies that curb corporate greed—read "personal greed," by the way. These corporations don't spring up out of the ground like turnip tops—and serve the public. If making the public interest a priority is radical, then every step forward this country has made since the Revolution has been radical.

Another nonsense headline for Edwards. What a surprise.

[andyboy]

Isn't John Edwards the one who's saying he sounds like a President?

Does he mean he sounds like a middle-aged white guy?

John is getting antsy. He keeps waiting for his natural advantages to kick in. His race. His faith. His gender. Not in that order.

How much longer can he fill the air with images of Camelot? Not much I'm afraid.

John learned his lessons well from Kerry. How to be a boring and virtually undiscernable part of the wallpaper. How to lose in short. Inspite of all the odds in your favor. Poor John.

John needed to talk tough on foreign policy. That's all he had to do. He forgot the one cardinal rule of politics. You can say anything. Make any wild promise. After you get elected all bets are off. John could have said he intends to stay the course and people would have been eating out of his palm. And it wouldn't have meant a thing. Stay the course. Think about it. It doesn't really mean anything.

Whaddya doin' man?....St­ayin' the course.

It's like keeping the faith. These young politico's today don't know shit. John, if you want to save your candidacy call me. Before it's too late.

[localman]

I see a lot of rhetoric being thrown around, but not any many plans to back it up. I don't know, maybe the Edwards supporters could shed some light for me.

[kfdan]

I certainly like what I hear for Edwards! Good luck!

[FightForJustice]

I agree with many of the posters above....I am constantly angered by the misleading and/or sensational headlines in regards to Edwards ...for the love of the heavens, Peggy Noonan and a column about John Edwards hair? I am tired of Huffpost. Just tired of it. It is becoming more often than not as biased as the MSM it decries.

[bluesnot]

Get corporations out of government. There should be a separation of corporations and state. These corporations have gotten way too powerful and look at how things have gone to hell.

The Military Industrial Complex is just one part of the problem.

Which other candidates are "radical"? "Radical" change is what the country needs.

[Researchguy66]

While were being "radical", the article needs a slight correction­...

"Paper maker Georgia Pacific, another big employer in town, has also been hit hard by job exports."

FALSE, Georgia Pacific does tremendously well exporting US jobs overseas. It's the workers who don't do quite so well.

STAY ON MESSAGE, JOHN!!!

[ChristopherLib]

How has he radicalized his message? These are the same things he has been saying for the last year. It's hardly radical, it's the populist message that played a good part of the Democrats winning back the the House and Senate last year.

More shilling for the Obama campaign on this site, that's certainly no surprise. Edwards is moving up in Iowa as is a threat. He must be brought down.

[wijg]

"Edwards Radicalizes Anti-Corporate Pitch"

I guess speaking in defense of the middle class has become extreme.

[HumeSkeptic]

It is only in the minds of political pundits that speaking the truth is "radical".

[HumeSkeptic]

"Everything about America is threatened today...th­is is an epic struggle for the future of America," Edwards told the cheering crowd. "Corporate greed and the very powerful use their money to control Washington and this corrupting influence is destroying the middle class."

-----------------

Hear! Hear!

Finally, I hear a "major" Presidential candidate say it exactly the way it is. No triangulation, no bullshit.

Go Edwards!

(I'm still inclined to vote for Kucinich, but Edwards is too damn impressive to ignore.)